At least 6 stabbed in the New York subway after the mayor announced a new security plan

By Chantal Da Silva -

At least six people were stabbed on the New York subway system over the weekend.

The first attacks came just hours after Mayor Eric Adams and New York Governor Kathy Hochul unveiled a new plan to combat violence on public transportation, according to authorities.

Five people were stabbed in the subway system in just over 24 hours after Adams and Hochul unveiled a 17-page

, in which more police and mental health teams will be deployed throughout the system subway from Monday.

[4-Year-Old Girl Missing Since 2019 Found Under Stairs in New York]

A sixth person was stabbed Sunday night on the 6 line near Canal Street, the New York Police Department said.

In the first incident, reported Friday night, a man was allegedly stabbed in the forearm around 5 p.m., NYPD told NBC New York.

He was taken to the hospital and is in stable condition.

At least four incidents were reported on Saturday, with one of the suspects accused of punching a 20-year-old woman in the back shortly before 3 p.m., according to police.

After a verbal dispute, the man allegedly pulled out a knife and stabbed the woman three times in her abdomen.

A Latina mother and her family suffer a racist attack on a train in New York

Jan 20, 2022

The woman was taken to an area hospital in stable condition.

Her condition as of early Monday morning was unclear.

In another incident recorded around 8:30 pm on Saturday, a 24-year-old man was allegedly stabbed in the leg with a box cutter after two teenagers approached him and tried to rob him.

The suspects fled the scene, according to police.

[NYC Mayor Eric Adams Allows Non-Citizen Voting Bill to Become Law]

Another reported stabbing around 9 pm occurred after the suspect and another person started smoking an unknown substance.

When the victim asked them to move, the suspect allegedly responded by displaying a knife before stabbing the victim in the arm.

The victim was taken to a local hospital for a puncture wound, but she was listed in stable condition, according to the NYPD.

The weekend attacks came at a time when New York City continues to grapple with rising crime on public transportation, with serious crimes up 65% this year, according to New York's NBC. York.

The stabbings also came amid protests over public transportation safety following the death of Michelle Go, a 40-year-old woman who died after being pushed in front of a New York subway car last month.

Subway station in Manhattan, New York, on January 19, 2022. Spencer Platt / Getty Images

Go, who was allegedly attacked by a homeless man, Simon Martial, had been waiting for a train at the Times Square station when she was pushed from behind. 

[“I am afraid to get on the train with my children”: a Mexican mother denounces a racist attack on the New York subway]

On Friday, Adams and Hochul announced that the new Subway Safety Plan would address public safety issues and support the homeless and seriously mentally ill on the New York subway, while cracking down on anyone sleeping seats, displaying aggressive behavior towards passengers, or creating an “unhealthy environment” in the subway system.

"It is cruel and inhumane to allow homeless people to live on the subway, and unfair to paying riders and transit workers who deserve a clean, orderly and safe environment," Adams said in a statement.

"The days of turning a blind eye to this growing problem are over," she added.

“For too long, our mental health care system has been financially cut, and the pandemic has only made things more difficult for New Yorkers with serious mental illness who are homeless,” Hochul added in a separate statement. 

"We must work together to keep our subways - the lifeblood of New York City - safe for all riders, and to get help and services to those in need," he said.